Rep. Mary Franson (08B) – Legislative Update

It’s been a rough year for the Minnesota taxpayer thanks to the policies that came out of the 2013 legislative session. Here are just a few highlights – by the numbers – of the damage done to Minnesotans this year by the Democrat-controlled state government.

· $2,400,000,000 – Democrats imposed a $2.4 billion tax and fee increase on the hardworking families of Minnesota. Put another way, that’s $440 in new taxes and fees for every man, woman, and child in Minnesota.

· 86% – the percentage of childcare providers who oppose unionization of their small businesses. Moms, dads, and childcare providers alike overwhelmingly opposed forced unionization, yet Democrats voted to enact it anyway. Thankfully, the law is currently on hold in federal court.

· 1,587 – the number of Minnesotans whose private information – including Social Security numbers – was released by MNsure because of inadequate data practice safeguards.

· 280,000 – the number of Minnesotans who are expected to lose their current health insurance plans because of Governor Dayton’s implementation of Obamacare in Minnesota.

· 1.5% – the new tax imposed on health insurance plans by MNsure’s unelected board for 2014. That tax is likely to be higher in future years.

· $89,500,000 – taxpayer dollars proposed for a new elaborate office building for state senators

If past is prologue, then we better batten down the hatches. It could be a very expensive 2014 session. There’s already talk of gun control measures, unfunded mandates on our local schools, and new regulatory burdens for our small businesses that provide most of the jobs in our community.

The legislative session begins on February 25. I continue to be available for constituent meetings, calls, and e-mails. Please let me know what thoughts, comments, and concerns you have as the session approaches. You can contact me at Rep.Mary.Franson@House.MN or call my office at 651-296-3201. You can also send mail to my office address: 211 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155.

I hope you had a Merry Christmas and wish you and your family a very happy 2014!